For Rocket, World Juniors golden in more ways than 1
Cal Foote says competing against world’s top players showed him how to improve his play
Kelowna Rockets defenceman Cal Foote returned from the world junior hockey championships with not only a gold medal, but also important insights on how to take his game to the next level.
“It was close to a month-long process, so that’s a lot of time to learn and develop,” Foote said Wednesday.
“You learn a ton from playing all the great players from all the other countries,” Foote said. “For me, I think it was definitely a faster pace. Players were a lot stronger. So I need to try to bring that back here.
“For me, I just want to play fast and make sure my feet are moving, and play with a high tempo,” Foote said.
Foote and Rockets teammate Dillon Dube were part of the Canadian team that beat Sweden 3-1 to win the gold medal last Friday.
“I was always watching (hockey) as a little boy, so to be able to play in the tournament and have the opportunity that Team Canada gave me, I’m very thankful. It’s a dream come true,” Foote said.
“It was kind of chaos on the bench, everyone hugging everyone,” he said. “Just an amazing feeling. I’ll never forget it.”
Foote made one of the best plays of the World Juniors — a diving goal-line save to stop a Finnish shot that had eluded Canadian goalie Carter Hart.
“I think that was just pure instinct,” Foote said. “I saw the puck and tried to swipe it away, and good thing I got pretty lucky.”
Foote, the son of former NHL player Adam Foote, was born in Colorado while his dad played for the Colorado Avalanche.
A holder of dual citizenship, he could have played for either Team Canada or Team U.S.A., but he has said he has always considered himself a Canadian first. It was his first time representing Canada at a tournament.
The World Juniors, held in Buffalo, N.Y., were sparsely attended for many of the early games. But Foote, who was taken 14th overall in last year’s NHL draft by the Tampa Bay Lightning, said he’s confident hockey will continue to grow in popularity across the U.S.
“I know the NHL is trying to do more and more outdoor games and stuff like that to get the fans watching,” he said.
Foote was ready to play for last night’s Rockets game against the Spokane Chiefs. The Rockets’ other gold medallist, Canadian captain Dillon Dube, however, is sick and was expected to be scratched.